Wind-up device for tubular material



Dec. 12, 1950 H. GERSTEIN ETAL 2,534,015

WIND-UP DEVICE FOR TUBULAR MATERIAL Filed April 15, 1948 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 JNVEN TOR.

Dec. 12, 1950 H. GERSTEIN ETAL 2,534,015

WIND-UP DEVICE FOR TUBULAR MATERIAL 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 15, 1948 IN V EN TOR.

1950 H. GERSTEIN ETAL 2,534,015

WIND-UP DEVICE FOR TUBULAR MATERIAL Filed April 13, 1948 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 mllllhllllllll'l 1N VEN TOR.

IIHIIIIII'II $8 Patented Dec. 12 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WIND-UP DEVICE FOR TUBULAR MATERIAL poration of New York Application April 13, 1948, Serial No. 20,638

14 Claims. 1

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in machnes for making tubular ma terial and has especial reference to improvements in means for winding up said material as it is formed.

A main object of the invention is to insure that the tubular material may be expeditiously and efficiently flattened out after being formed and then may be wound up on to a roll in an even, compact, manner so that a smooth even roll is produced with the maximum amount of material possible rolled up thereon.

A further object is to so construct the wind-up device and support it that, when necessary to rotate it, one operator may man'pulate it with very little eiiort because of the symmetrical balance of the parts thereof.

A still further object is to provide a wind-up device which can be quickly and easily adjusted by the one operator in an instants time to align the center of the device with the center of the tube being wound up, since the device is adapted to wind-up tubes of varying diameters running from tubes of small diameter to tubes of large diameter.

A yet further object is to provide a novel streamlined wind-up device in which various adjustments can be quickly and easily made so that the introduction of a new length of formed ma terial may be expeditiously achieved with a minimum loss of time and without the need for unusual skill on the part of the operator.

Still another object is to provide a wind-up device in which the drivin forces and strains on the frame or" the device are evenly balanced to reduce strain and torsional effects as much as possible.

Further and more specific objects, features, and advantages will more clearly appear from a consideration of the detailed specification hereinafter set forth, especially when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which illustrate a present preferred form which the invention may assume and which form part of the specification.

It is to be understood that this wind-up device is adapted to flatten out and Wind up tubular material, however, it may be formed, but the embodiment shown is especially adapted to flatten out and wind up tubular material formed by being run off rolls of flat sheeting of appropriate width, advanced spirally around a mandrel, sewed into a tube thereon as indicated in the U. S. Patent No. 2,406,677, issued on August 27, 1946 to Gardner and Kagan and entitled, Apparatus for Making Spiral Wound fubing. Any material may be thus handled but a preferred material used for making bags of tubular formation is burlap and when the tube is spirally sewn, as indicated, it has particular properties and qualities which are of peculiar character and advantage in the trade especially when the tubing is used for wrapping articles for shipment.

In brief and general terms the invention inciudes spreader means disposed with a tube being wound up flat with one portion of the spreader disposed as closely adjacent as possible to the point where the material starts to be wound up on the wind-up roll. In this manner control of the material up to the last is effective to keep it spread and to make a more compact roll. This spreader means may be suitably supported or may rest free within the tube as may be desired. In a preferred form it is a light weight wire frame of suitable shape disposed with a forward edge lying close to the line of wrapping of the material on the roll. ihis spreader may then control the ultimate spread of the material just as it reaches the roll and can be effective under proper conditions without any other spreaders or feed rolls being related thereto.

More particularly, the invention includes a wind-up frame having feed rollers between which the material to be wound up is passed after hav ing been flattened out in a preliminary manner by suitable spreader devices disposed in front of the rollers. The material, after passing through said rollers is passed around a wind-up roller and is thereon wound up until a suflicient length of material is thereon. It has been found that with material of loose weave under tension, and especially material which has been sewn on the bias into tubing, if no control is placed upon it between the feed rollers and the main wind-up roller then it tends to become distorted and does not wind up evenly and compactly on the windup roller so that much less material can be wound up before the main roller becomes filled up. Therefore, it is part of this invention to dispose a float ng spreading device within the tubular material between the feed rollers and the main roller to keep the material fully spread out until the very point where it is received on the main roller. This spreader which floats as noted is preferably flexibly connected to the spreader, mentioned above, which is disposed in front of the feed rollers. lhe floating spreader can be quickly put in place and varies in size depending upon the size of tubular material being wound up. By exhaustive experiments it has been found .3 that much more even and compact rolls of 'material are thus formed and much more material can be wound up on a given roll than before.

A further feature of the invention relates to simple and efficient means whereby the wind-up device is mounted on a carriage upon tracks and a manipulatable device is provided whereby the operator by the mere turning of a handle can quickly and easily adjust the center of the windup device with that of the center of the tube being received thereon so that the wind-up proceeds smoothly and evenly without any tendency for the material to become distorted in being wound up or to jam.

A still further feature of the invention includes a wind-up frame in which the driven parts are .connectedto the drive motor in a balanced manlap, is shown in the drawings, of which Fig. 1 isa plan view of the wind-up device;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof;

V Fig. 3 is a partial side elevation of the mechanism for driving the feed rolls;

Fig; i is a partial vertical section of the material passing through the feed rolls and onto the main wind-up roll and being controlled by the floating spreader, taken on the line ii of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a similar section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig.1;

Fig. 6 is a front elevation of the wind-up mechanism;

Fig. 7 is a plan view of part of the device showing the use of a much wider floating spreader to take care of the wind-up of much wider tubms;

Fig. 8 is a section taken on the line 88 of Fig. 1, and;

Fig. 9 is a schematic plan view of a form of spreader employed.

General construction and operation In the formation of tubular material by sewing or by other methods from sheet material into tubular form A, it may pass over a mandrel and thence to a wind-up device B which has feed rollers C and a main wind-up roller D, both rollers being power driven in proper synchronism to be later described. As the material passes through the feed rollers it is naturally flattened out and in this flattened condition is wound up on the main roller D. In order to facilitate this flattening out action a spreader device E is mounted on a bracket F on the end of the mandrel of the machine and lies within the tubular material in front of the rollers C and is so resiliently con-- structed that it will maintain the tube spread out fiat right up to the point where the tube passes to the feed rollers. The wind-up device may remain stationary or it may be rotatable on its base and the form shown herein is a rotatable one since it is used for making spiral-wound tubing preferably of burlap. The general construction thus far set forth is clearly shown in the above-mentioned patent and the present inven- 4 tion constitutes an improvement on the wind-up device therein shown.

The main spreader E is mounted on the bracket F which may be adjustably attached to the end of the mandrel or other support over which the tubular-formed material ispassing and comprises a shaft l0 rotatably mounted on the bracket F. A plate ll fixed on shaft It supports pivotally the ends of two arms 52 and I3 the outer ends of which are pivotally connected to ends of two other arms i i and I5 connected at their other ends to a collar l6 slidably adjustable along the shaft lli by means of a set screw ll. This construction permits the adjustment of the transverse distance between the outer joined ends of the arms [2, I3 and M, 15 to the proper relation to the tube being passed along to keep said tube fully spread as it passes over the spreader E to the feed rollers C. The general type of main spreader is shown in the patent above mentioned and forms no part of the present invention except in combination with the floating spreader now to be described.

Floating spreader construction The spreader arrangement shown in Fig. 9 is a general form and represents the broad idea of the herein invention in that the spreader E is moved up within the tube A being wound up on roll D so that the forward portions of the spreader are disposed very closely adjacent the line G where the tubular material begins to contact the roll and be wound up. This spreader may be suitably supported or under proper circumstances may rest free within the tube especially if made of fixed shape and light in weight. With the spreader thus shown and with certain materials no other spreader is needed and the use of feed' rollsC may be avoided thus simplifying the construction.

In the specific form shown the feed rollers C on the wind-up mechanism are spaced apart on shafts l6 and I? which are disposed one above the other as shown in Fig. 6 and this provides a series of pairs of contacting upper and lower roller elements between which thematerial is gripped. It also provides gaps between the shafts in the spaces between the sets of rollers considered horizontally. A flexible connection, such as a chain [8 is at one end connected to the end of the shaft ill in any suitable manner and is passed between the shafts l6 and IT at one of the gaps shown. 7

To the other end of this flexible connection is fastened a floating spreader frame formed of parallel bars l9 and 28 having side bars 2! sloping divergently from the rear bar 2@ to the front bar I 9 as shown in Fig. 1. This floating frame lines naturally within the tubular material being wound up and rests by gravity therewithin with the front or advance bar or edge 19 disposed parallel to and almost at the point where the material is received upon the main wind-up roller or shaft as shown in Figs. 4 and 5. This spreader therefore not only, b its dimensions, maintains the material spread out but by resting on its bottom layer tends to press the material compactly and firmly on to the wind-up roll in its spread out flat condition. This, by exhaustive experiments and practical tests, has been proven to cause the formation of evenly wound rolls and also the'formation of much more compact rolls than hitherto, allowing greater amounts of material to be wound up on a given size of roller than before. As the floating spreader lies on the goods as it is wound up, it will naturally rise as the diameter of the wound-up roll increases and this is permitted by the flexible manner in which the auxiliary spreader is connected to the main spreader. If larger widths of tubes are to be formed, as indicated in Fig. 7, a wider floating frame is provided having intermediate bracing bars 22. In this case there are two spaced flexible connectors 23 and 24 similar to the chain l8 above mentioned and they pass through appropriate gaps in the feed roller unit as described above. Their other ends are connected to the ends of a cross bar 25 which at its middle is connected to the end of shaft it. Thus provision is made to spread narrow and wide tubular material and to keep it spread right up to the point where it passes on to the wind-up roller. Prior to the development of this floating spreader often great difficulty was encountered in keeping the material wound up smooth and even and the amount of material which could be wound up on a given roll was considerably less than is now possible.

Wind-up frame and feed roll drive The wind-up frame is of substantially rectangular shape and formed as a casting having side walls 26 and H and a rear cross wall 28. The front of the device is formed as a flanged ring plate 2t to which the forward ends of the side walls are connected. The flange 39 of this ring plate rides on rollers 3| spaced in a curved line along the top of a front base bracket 32 mounted on the base frame 33 of the device. This base frame 33 is provided with rollers 34 which are adapted to lie in tracks 35 extending transversely of the device as shown clearly in Fig. 1.

From one end of the base frame 33 rises a pedestal member 36 having a rearward extension plate 37 supporting a drive motor 38 and at its top supporting bearings 39 and 40 for the motor shaft 45 and for a rotatable platform bracket 42 to which is connected the rear cross wall 28 of the wind-up frame and on which is mounted a reduction gear unit 43. From a consideration of Fig. 1 it will be seen that the axis of the motor shaft 45 is along the longitudinal center line of the wind-up frame and that it extends into the reduction box 43 through the bearing for the said frame. same time the frame, if desired, can be rotated. It is also to be noted that the axis of the shaft is always alon this center line and that whenever a tube is to be wound-up the main spreader shaft I8 is always aligned with the axis of the shaft M. This center line is also the center of the ring plate 2% at the front of the wind-up device.

Extending from the gear unit 43 in opposite directions transversely to the length of the device are two shafts 44 and 45, journalled at their other ends in the side walls 26 and 21 of the rotatable wind-up frame. At the outer end of shaft 44 is a pinion 4S meshing with a pinion 41, in turn meshing with a pinion 48, which in turn meshes with a gear 43. The gear 49 is journalled in the side wall of the frame, and the pinions 41 and 48 are mounted on a plate 5i! pivoted around the axis of gear 49 and adjustable in any suitable manner (not shown) so that the size of the pinion 41 may be changed as desired to get various speeds for the feed rollers C. The shaft 5| of gear 49 has on its end a gear 52 to which is connected a chain 53, the other end of which is passed over a gear 54 on. the shaft E6 of the upper set of feed rollers C as shown in Fig. 6. The opposite end The motor shaft can rotate while at the 6. of this shaft has a gear 55 thereon meshing with a gear 56 on the corresponding end of the lower feed roller shaft ll.

Feed roller connection and disconnection As seen in Fig. 8 more in detail an end of the lower feed roller shaft I! is mounted on bearing blocks 51 urged upward by spring 58 to press the rollers together at all times with predetermined pressure. The other end of the same shaft is similarly mounted. Adjacent the respective side walls 26 and 2'5 of the frame are levers 59 and 6G pivoted thereto and connected by spaced parallel rods 6! and 62 so that the pressure of the operators hands on either rod will cause the movement of the levers. The extension of the rods across the front of the device enables the operator who stands adjacent the ring plate 29 to connect and disconnect the rollers at will in an instant of time and from any position. To achieve. this connection and disconnection the lower portion of each lever has pivoted thereto a cam bar 63 which has a width of variable dimension and this bar may be moved between the shafts l5 and I? to dispose the wide part 64 between the shafts to force them apart and thus separate the feed rollers. This is accomplished by pulling forwardly on the rods 6! and 62. Moving the rods rearwardly will bring the narrower part of the bars between the shafts and permit the rollers to engage.

Wind-up roller drive The shaft 45 extending from the gear box or unit 43 has fixed at one end. a clutch plate 65 with which cooperates a slip-clutch plate 66 pressed thereagainst by a sprin 67, the pressure of which against the plate 66 may be adjusted by an adjustable nut 68 on the outer end of the shaft. The plate 66 carries a gear 59 carrying one end of a chain N3, the other end of which passes over a gear H on the end of the shaft 72 on which the material is to be wound up. This shaft '52 has therein a longitudinal slot 13. In order to define the width limits of the material being wound up I there are slidable along the shaft '52 circular end plates l4 having hubs 15 provided with set screws 16, the inner ends of which project into the slot 13 to hold the plates in adjusted position on the shaft. In order to grip the end of the material to be wound up each plate is provided with an inwardly projecting pin ll spaced parallel to the shaft 12 but a slight distance therefrom and the end edges of the material are slipped under these pins before the shaft is started in its movement so that the material is thereby firmly gripped. By adjusting the slip clutch plate 65 the speed of the drive of the main roller may be regulated as circumstances may require. By means (not shown) the shaft 62 may be lifted out of its bearings at will in order to place the plates 14 thereon and to remove the roll of material after it is wound up thereon.

Lateral adjustment of wind-up axis As seen particularly in Figs. 1 and 6, a manually operated shaft i8 is journalled at one end on a bracket is attached to pedestal 35 and may be turned by a handle 80. The other end of this shaft has thereon a worm 8| meshing with a worm gear 82 on a shaft 83 which extends between a pair of rollers 34. The other pair of rollers 34 are similarly connected by a shaft 83. It is obvious that when the operator turns the handle the one shaft carrying the worm gear 82 will turn the rollers 34 on the ends thereof and 7 stated.

General operation When tubular material has been formed and is to be wound up on this improved device, it is passed over a form or mandrel, such as that shown in the patent herein mentioned, and then over the main spreader device shown herein the shaft ii) of which has previously been aligned with the center of the tube to be wound up. The handle 83 is then'operated to align the center axis of the wind-up device with the axis of the shaft iii so that the axis of the tube, the axis of the main spreader, and the axis of the wind-up device are all aligned. When this adjustment is made it will be noticed that the axis of the drive shaft iii of the motor 38 and consequently the axis of rotation of the wind-up frame are coincident with the axis of the main spreader and that of the tube being wound up. This alignment is necessary for balanced even smooth operation and uninterrupted action. Of course, it must be clearly understood that if the tube is formed Without advancing it spirally over a. mandrel, then it is not necessaryto rotate the wind-up frame but merely necessary to operate the motor to drive the feed rollers C and the main wind-up roller :2. The form of the invention shown herein is adapted either for rotation of the wind-up frame or for wind-up while it is stationary.

After aligning the parts as described, the operator then presses against the rods 6! and 62 to separate the feed rollers C'so that the end of the tube formed may be passed between the rollers and around the floating spreader which is disposed between the main roller i2 and the feed rollers C as above mentioned. The particular size of floating spreader employed is determined by the size of the tube to be wound up and its connection to the main spreader by means of the flexible chains I8 is as set forth above depending upon the size of the floating spreader employed. The end of the tubular material is then slipped under the pins ii adjacent the roller shaft 72 and on the plates i l. The floating spreader is then resting within the tube with its edge l9 resting on the bottom of the tube and closely adjacent the shaft E2. The feed rollers are then brought together again by pulling back on the rods BI and 62 and the motor 38 is then started to drive the feed rollers C and to'rotate the main windup shaft l2. If the tube being wound up is com- 'ing off a mandrel straight, then it is not necessary to rotate the wind-up frame, but if it is coming oif in a spiral manner, as set forth in the above-mentioned patent, then it is necessary for the main roller shaft 12 will rest on the goods immediately adjacent the point of reception on the Wind-up roll and maintain it fully spread out and flat and at the same time keep it lying close to previous wound-up layers of the material so that the finished wound-u roll will be compact and contain a much greater length of material for a given ultimate diameter than has hitherto been possible. When the roll is wound-up fully, the drive is halted, the shaft with the roll of material is lifted out of the frame, the plates M are slid oif the shaft l2 and then the shaft '12 is slipped out of the roll which is then ready for use or shipment or storage.

It is thus seen that we have provided a simple, eflicient, compact machine which is easily and quickly adjusted to suit desired conditions and material to be wound up, can be operated by one person as far as the wind-up is concerned and will continue to operate on lengths of tubing indefinitely, and is only limited by the amount of material to be wound up and the size of the roll to be produced. The arrangement and relation of the drive and the various related axes is such as to give a fully balanced unit which can, if desired, be rotated by hand with a minimum of effort on the part of the operator.

While the invention has been described in detail and shown with respect to the accompany- I'ig drawing, it is not'to be limited to such details, since many changes and modifications may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. Hence, it is desired to cover any and all forms and modifications of the invention which may come within the lan-' guage and scope of any one or more of the appended claims.

What we claim as our invention is:

1. A wind-up device for tubular material having a wind-up roller and feed rollers between which the tubular material passes which includes 7 a spreader element within the tubular material between the feed rollers and the wind-up roller, a second spreader element on the other side of the feed rollers and within the tubular material and means for flexibly supporting the first spreader element within the tubular material.

2. A wind-up device for tubular material having a wind-up roller and feed rollers between which the'tubular material passes which includes a spreader element within the tubular material between the feed rollers and the wind-up roller,

up roller, a second spreader element on the other side of the feed rollers and within the tubular material, and a chain means extending from the second spreader element to'the first spreader element to flexibly support the first'spreader element within the tubular material.

4. A wind-up device for tubular material having a wind-up roller and feed rollers between which the tubular material passes which includes a spreader element disposed between the feed rollers and the wind-up roller, said element being of polygonal shape with front and rear edges parallel to the axes of the feed rollers and the wind-up roller and side edges divergent from the rear edge toward the front edge.

5. A wind-up device for tubular material having a wind-up roller and feed rollers between which the tubular material passes which includes a spreader element disposed within the tube be tween the feed rollers and the wind-up roller and with an edge thereof disposed closely adjacent the line where the material is received upon the wind-up roller.

6. A wind-up device for tubular material having a wind-up roller and feed rollers between which the tubular material passes which includes a spreader element disposed within the tube between the feed rollers and the wind-up roller and with an edge thereof disposed closely adjacent the line where the material is received upon the wind-up roller, a second spreader element disposed within the tube on the other side of the feed rollers, and flexible means connecting the two spreader elements.

'7. A Wind-up device for tubular material having a wind-up roller and feed rollers spaced along their respective shafts and between which rollers the tubular material passes which includes a spreader element disposed within the tube between the feed rollers and the wind-u roller and with an edge thereof disposed closely adjacent the line where the material is received upon the wind-up roller, a second spreader element disposed within the tube on the other side of the feed rollers, and flexible means extending through the spaces between the feed rollers and connecting the two spreader elements whereby the first spreader is flexibly supported from the second spreader.

8. A wind-up device for tubular material having a frame supporting a wind-up roller and feed rollers between which the tubular material passes which includes means to spread the material before it reaches the feed rollers, means to spread the material between the feed rollers and the wind-up roller, and flexible means connecting the two spreading means.

9. A wind-up device which includes a base, a rotatable frame thereon having a horizontal axis, a spreader device rotatably disposed adjacent said frame and having a horizontal axis of rotation, and means on the base to move it laterally to align said axes.

10. A wind-up device which includes a base, a rotatable frame thereon having a horizontal axis, tracks transverse to said axis, wheels on the base adapted to run in said tracks, a worm gear associated with one of said wheels, a worm associated with said worm gear, and manipulatable means on the base and connected to said worm to effect the lateral shifting of the base to shift the horizontal axis.

11. A wind-up device which includes a base laterally movable on tracks, a rotatable frame on said base and having a horizontal axis of rotation, a ring plate on one end of said frame, a motor on said base, a motor shaft, a journal for said motor shaft and the end of the frame opposite the ring plate, the axis of the motor shaft, the axis of rotation of the frame, and the center of the ring plate being coincidental.

12. A wind-up device which includes a base laterally movable on tracks, a rotatable frame on said base and having a horizontal axis of rotation, a ring plate on one end of said frame, a motor on said base, a motor shaft, a journal for said motor shaft and the end of the frame opposite the ring plate, the axis of the motor shaft, the axis of rotation of the frame, and the center of the ring plate being coincidental, a rotatable spreader element disposed at the end of the frame opposite the motor, the axis of the spreader coinciding with the axis of rotation of the frame.

13. A wind-up device which includes a windup roll on which tubular material is to be wound, a main spreader within the tube, and an auxiliary spreader within the tube closely adjacent the wind-up roll.

14. A wind-up device which includes a windup roll on which tubular material is to be wound, a main spreader within the tube, an auxiliary spreader within the tube and disposed closely adjacent the wind-up roll, and means to flexibly support the auxiliary spreader from the main spreader.

HARRY GERSTEIN. RALPH KAGAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the flle of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,081,933 Waring Dec. 16, 1913 1,606,123 Hermann Nov. 9, 1926 2,271,528 Pfohl et a1 Feb. 3, 1942 

